As If It Were My Birthday . . .

~ rabbitpatchdiary.com

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It is a quiet afternoon at the rabbit patch-an unfamiliar kind of quiet.  There was no “Sunday Dinner” as daddy did not feel well this morning.  Kyle and Christian are with friends.  Cash and Christopher Robin are sleeping.  The last  of the cotton is being picked in a field, just “across the way”.   The drone of the combine acts like a lullaby as it drifts through the open window, by the “morning table”.  

It seems, I am  “left to my own devices”.  I am liberated from  housekeeping duties, as I cleaned yesterday,  well into the night.  I did manage to find a task or two in the afternoon-and since there are no”left-overs” from dinner, I will cook a good supper.   What a good time it would be to practice the cello, except I am only borrowing one now and I do not yet take it home.

  I listened to several enlightening lessons-  all focused on proper living.  The resounding message was to love yourself and others- and to be grateful.  The business of loving yourself really , is to remind ourselves that we truly are “beautifully and wonderfully made”.  The business of loving others, to me, could be summed up by doing our best to “understand the heart ” of others.  Certainly, my account is a “watered down” version of this ancient lesson-and pales in comparison to the beautiful presentation  by the ninety-three year old sage, I was listening to, but I was inspired all over again, to deepen my love for others.

I called a dear friend about mid afternoon.  Her name is Julie and I have known her since I was a young girl, but we happened to become neighbors, a score of years ago,  and that is when we developed a friendship, that bound us mightily.  I have laughed more with Julie than I have with most people. We do not have to “bar subjects”, but are free to discuss anything, as we please.  . . somehow we always end up talking about God.  Julie is well studied and quite “sharp”, so she provides interesting conversations, you don’t soon forget.

Julie has  a fair amount of ailments, which all  stemmed from high blood pressure.  A  stroke blinded her for a little while, but thankfully she recovered and regained her vision.  Her kidneys, did not recover.  She has been on dialysis a few years.  This summer, Julie had to have both of her legs amputated.  Julie is my age–fifty-eight.

Do not think Julie is in “dire straights” . . .or  feels pitiful for herself.  You would be mistaken. . .for Julie has the heart of a warrior, with her battles-and an iron clad faith.  Julie is thankful that the surgery relieved  her of pain.  She  is grateful to be liberated from the pain medicine she had to rely on, at one time.  Julie, unaware, inspired me, a second time  this day.  She had convinced me that living a life of gratitude was not only joyful-but peaceful and powerful too. 

By the time we hung up, I needed to turn a lamp on.  I sat for a short while, thinking that the day had passed with such generosity- as if it were my birthday.  I sat in the twilight, and I hoped and prayed to do better.  I wished better-for the whole world . . . until, the first stars came out . . . and  supper was ready  . . .and the boys were on the way home.  

 Dear Diary,  I want to love more . . and there is so much to love.  I must remember to be grateful too,   for there is so much to be grateful for . . friends are surely one of them. 

 

    

 

46 thoughts on “As If It Were My Birthday . . .”

  1. Lovely inspirational journal once again Michele. My heart goes to you and how inspiring Julie is! I’d love to grow old like that—warrior, beaten but standing up through the test of time. Your birthday or not, you deserve so much love too, for your heart is precious.
    Love from Germany, Christina

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  2. Reblogged this on Haddon Musings and commented:
    I am participating in Gratitude Week 2017 which is hosted by the very lovely Michelle at Michellegd.com. It is for one week and open to anyone.

    Today I am reflecting on friendship. I have been friends with Michele for about a year now. I don’t think I could put my own gratitude for the friendships I have developed through my life into words better than her words in the following post.

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  4. Michelle, I am glad to have found you via Bernadette’s wonderful blog.

    Your story about you and your so very close friend Julie is so endearing and I feel my heart sing in tune
    with so much care and love. And bravery.

    You are so right, each day will give us reminders about how much we have to be grateful for.
    Bless
    miriam

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    1. She has had a positive impact on me. We have been through a lot of things together-life altering things-not always agreed, but never argued. Love is bigger than needing to agree on every thing. I have learned a lot at her hands. thank you so much love Michele

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    1. thank you-I intend to share more about her-I just wanted her to have some time to process all that has happened-of course, she is quicker than the average bear at that! ha ha! thank you sweet Anne-love Michele

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  17. Love truly is the way to live, Michele. And the more we Love the more about Love we understand. And to have a friend like Julie is rare and is precious indeed. I am SO happy for you that you have a friendship like this to be free in thought and word and to flow. How beautiful. LOVED this story, dear friend. I thank you for it! 🤗

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  20. Yes, friends are surely one of them, and you are the dearest possible friend you could be to so many. My grandmother used to say, “To have a friend you must be a friend.” You exemplify those words. I am so glad you and Julie have a true and strong friendship. Surely you are two stalwart souls who have found one another.

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  21. “thinking that the day had passed with such generosity- as if it were my birthday.” I love how you express yourself…so beautifully said and conveys exactly what you are feeling. You should write a book filled with short stories…I would treasure it. Each day have a short story to read to start my day with such lovely sentiments and lessons of life to remember!! Yes there is always something to be grateful for…love Deb xo

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      1. You should print out your posts and put them together in a booklet and send them to a publisher…truly each one is a treasure! You’re most very welcome. love Deb

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  22. Your description of Julie puts me in my mind of my best human friend Jeff.
    He and I have been best friends since Junior High School. He is my son’s Godfather, and I was the best man at his wedding (he was in the Navy at the time and couldn’t stand up for me).
    There are “no holds barred” when it comes to conversation, and like you, we have not always agreed, but we have always peacefully accepted the other. We have never had an argument in…oh, I guess about 42 years or so. I find this to be somewhat miraculous.
    Julie’s attitude-courage if it’s the right word, is indeed inspiring.
    Each day begins anew.
    Each day is another opportunity to be the person you want to be, to live and love as you see fit.
    Every day is, in its way, your birthday.
    Happy Birthday, and blessings to Julie.

    Seek peace,

    Paz

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    1. You and Jeff sound very much like Julie and i. To have a friend for decades is an amazing feat altogether-it is formed much like a pearl. I am glad you have that too. I love the message for Julie and she will too. thank you my friend-Michele

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